Short Video and Livestreaming 'Proxy Rights Protection' Scam: Using Refund Assistance as Bait for Commission and Extortion of Financial Institutions

Who Gets Targeted

The primary victims are ordinary consumers holding financial products such as insurance, wealth management, and investment advisory services. They are particularly concentrated in the 30-55 age group, often from low-to-middle income brackets who have limited understanding of financial terms and are desperate to recover funds due to losses or dissatisfaction. Their psychological vulnerabilities include: first, unfamiliarity with legitimate rights protection channels and impatience with complex procedures, making them susceptible to exaggerated claims of 'full refunds' and 'professional advocacy' on short video platforms; second, being driven by anxiety and anger, which leads them to disclose personal information readily; and third, being unaware of the extortionist motives behind these proxy agencies, ultimately risking not only high commission fees but also personal data breaches, credit damage, and even involvement as accomplices in extortion.

骗局怎么运作

• Step 1: Mass-publish short videos on platforms featuring 'full refund guides,' 'how to recover investment losses,' or 'one-on-one financial rights experts.' These videos exploit the victims' desperation to recover losses, using exaggerated scripts and fake success stories to build a professional and reliable image, directing traffic from public platforms to private messaging channels.
• Step 2: Once the victim adds the contact, the perpetrator poses as a 'rights consultant' or 'legal specialist,' demanding full sets of personal information, including photos of both sides of the ID card, bank card numbers, mobile phone numbers, insurance policy screenshots, and transaction records. They claim these are necessary for regulatory complaints and negotiations with financial institutions, while in reality, they are harvesting large-scale data for resale or other illegal purposes.
• Step 3: Based on the collected information, the proxy instructs the consumer to fabricate or exaggerate instances of mis-selling or false advertising by the financial institution. They provide standardized complaint templates and scripts, attempting to pressure the institution through high-frequency, concurrent complaints to force a compromise due to administrative costs.
• Step 4: Once the financial institution agrees to negotiate a refund under regulatory pressure, the proxy demands the consumer sign a service agreement, taking a high commission of 30% to 50% of the refunded amount. Some groups also charge upfront fees of several thousand yuan under the guise of 'material fees' or 'litigation costs,' despite providing no actual legal services and acting merely as intermediaries for forwarding complaints.
• Step 5: If the financial institution refuses unreasonable refund demands, some groups escalate their tactics by sending lawyer letters in the victim's name, spreading negative publicity, organizing protests, or threatening to report other alleged violations by the institution, which effectively constitutes extortion. Police investigations reveal that such groups often manage dozens or even hundreds of consumer complaints simultaneously, forming a large-scale criminal industry chain.

红旗信号（看到这些快跑）

• 🚩 Short videos or livestreams making absolute promises such as '100% full refund or no fee.' Legitimate legal service providers do not use short video traffic-driving tactics to make such guarantees.
• 🚩 The proxy requests core personal information such as ID cards, bank cards, and mobile verification codes, or demands the original insurance policy. The scope of data collection far exceeds what is required for legitimate representation, posing a severe risk of personal information leakage.
• 🚩 The proxy requires the consumer to sign a power of attorney delegating all rights protection and refund matters to a stranger, with the agreement containing clauses for high commission percentages or upfront service fees.
• 🚩 The proxy instructs the consumer to fabricate mis-selling details, provides standardized complaint templates, or even directs the consumer to forge signatures or tamper with audio recordings, which constitutes suspected false litigation and forgery of evidence.
• 🚩 When financial institutions refuse unreasonable refund demands, the proxy uses tactics like organizing gatherings, posting negative exposures, or malicious reporting to regulators to apply pressure, rather than seeking legal recourse. This behavior pattern is characteristic of extortion.

真实案例

• According to the Economic Observer on July 31, 2026, Shanghai police successfully cracked a case of illegal proxy rights protection and extortion in the financial sector. The criminal group used the guise of 'proxy rights protection' to pressure and extort securities investment advisory firms. The suspects have been subjected to criminal coercive measures, and the case involves multiple investment advisory firms. (Source: https://finance.jrj.com.cn/2026/08/07155158045895.shtml)
• As reported by Toutiao citing Wuhan police, local authorities mobilized over 100 officers to conduct a coordinated crackdown on an illegal proxy rights protection criminal group, detaining 37 people. The group used short video platforms to drive traffic, incited consumers to complain against financial institutions, and took commissions, demonstrating that this gray industry has formed a complete criminal chain.
• According to Xinhua News Agency on August 7, 2026, Shanghai's Putuo District cracked down on proxy rights protection extortion. Police dismantled several criminal groups that used 'professional rights protection' as a front to extort financial institutions through incited complaints. The cases involved insurance, wealth management, and other financial sectors, with victims spread across multiple provinces and cities.
• In September 2025, the first batch of typical cases of black/gray industry in the financial sector was released by the National Financial Regulatory Administration and the Ministry of Public Security. In the Lin and Ma 'proxy refund' extortion case: from December 2020 to April 2023, the two used 'full refund' as bait to post illegal advertisements, inducing policyholders to entrust them with refunds. They fabricated evidence of insurance company violations, filed repeated complaints with regulators, and incited policyholders to resist investigations. They maliciously handled refunds for 115 policyholders, causing 2.1762 million yuan in losses to insurance companies and illegally profiting 489,600 yuan. In May 2024, the court sentenced Lin to 11 years and Ma to 10 years for extortion. The second-instance ruling on April 9, 2025, upheld the original judgment. (Source: https://www.peopleapp.com/column/30050274343-500007091537)
• According to Nanfang Plus in August 2026, the Shanghai Public Security Bureau's Criminal Investigation Corps, in coordination with Jiading police, dismantled a 'professional rights protection team' that extorted securities investment consulting firms. The group fabricated standardized complaint scripts and incited clients to file malicious complaints. Cloaked as legal consultants, they used high-frequency calls to hotlines and mailed complaint letters to force companies to compromise and pay refunds, from which they took a 30% 'service fee.' This caused direct or indirect economic losses to companies exceeding 20 million yuan. Since May 2026, thousands of people have frequently called the companies' 400 hotlines demanding full refunds. 21 suspects, including Zhang and Gong, have been subjected to criminal coercive measures, with preliminary illegal profits exceeding 3 million yuan. (Source: https://static.nfnews.com/content/202608/07/c12700118.html)

Official Stance

• In February 2026, five departments—the National Financial Regulatory Administration, the Cyberspace Administration of China, the Ministry of Public Security, the People's Bank of China, and the China Securities Regulatory Commission—jointly issued a risk warning regarding illegal proxy rights protection short videos and livestreaming traps, explicitly stating that criminals use these platforms to commit fraud, steal personal information, and engage in extortion.
• The Guangxi Financial Regulatory Bureau, the People's Bank of China Guangxi Branch, the Guangxi Securities Regulatory Bureau, and the Guangxi Communications Administration jointly issued a risk warning regarding illegal proxy rights protection and loan intermediary online marketing traps, reminding consumers to protect their rights through legitimate channels.
• UBS Group (China) posted a risk reminder on its consumer protection page, advising clients to be wary of illegal proxy rights protection short videos and livestreaming traps, emphasizing the risks to personal information security.

How to Protect Yourself

• ✅ If you have a need to protect your rights regarding financial products, you should call the official customer service hotline of the financial institution directly or contact the bank/insurance consumer complaint hotline. Do not trust third-party agencies claiming to be 'rights experts' on short video platforms.
• ✅ In any rights protection scenario, do not provide core personal information such as original ID card photos, bank card passwords, or mobile SMS verification codes to unverified third parties. When necessary, limit the scope of authorization documents and specify their purpose.
• ✅ Before signing any rights protection service agreement, carefully read key terms regarding commission percentages, upfront fees, and the scope of authorization. If you find the commission rate is exorbitant or upfront payment is required, terminate the cooperation immediately and report it to regulatory authorities.
• ✅ If you discover that the proxy is inciting you to fabricate facts, forge evidence, or pressure financial institutions through organized gatherings or online exposure, refuse to cooperate. Retain evidence such as chat logs and transfer receipts, and report the matter to the local public security organ promptly.